Sealed journal box with breather



4, 1969 A. F. EMMERSON SEALED JOURNAL BOX WITH BREATHER Filed March 15, 1967 T LE 1 N VEN TOR. 4277/0 E EMA/450 BY awwawadwwamn A TTOR/VEVS.

United States Patent 3,425,193 SEALED JOURNAL BOX WITH BREATHER Arthur F. Emmersou, 425 Bell Ave., Altoona, Pa. 16602 Filed Mar. 15, 1967, Ser. No. 623,296 US. Cl. 55385 4 Claims Int. Cl. B01d 35/02, 46/00 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A tubular resilient plug is fitted in a breather opening in a sealed railroad car journal box. The plug has an integral diaphragm-like wall normally closing its outer end, but the wall is provided with at least three uniformly spaced radial slits to form a cusp valve in order to permit air to leave and enter the box.

Background of the invention Attempts are being made to tightly seal railroad car journal boxes so that no foreign matter, such as dust, dirt or liquids can enter them. This project has been so successful in some cases that when the air in a journal box is heated by the journal therein, suflicient air pressure is built up to blow out the seal at the inner end of the box around the car axle.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a journal box with a breather that normally will maintain the box sealed, but which will permit air to escape from it and thereby prevent harmful pressure from building up inside the box.

In accordance with this invention, the journal box is provided in a convenient location with a breather opening, in which a tubular resilient plug is fitted. The outer end of the passage through the plug normally is closed by an integral diaphragm-like wall, which is provided with at least three radial slits intersecting at its center. The wall therefore serves as a valve, the sections of which will flex outwardly and permit air to escape it air pressure starts to build up inside the box.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary longitudinal section through a journal box, showing the inner end of my breather plug;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side view of the plug mounted in place;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the outer end of the plug; and

FIG. 4 is an enlarged central longitudinal section of the plug with part of the filter therein broken away.

Referring to the drawings, a conventional journal box 1 has an access opening at its outer end that is closed by a hinged lid 2 which presses a gasket 3 tightly against the edge of the opening. The lid is urged toward the box in a conventional manner, such as by a spring or clamp (not shown). In the inner end of the box (not shown) there is the usual seal around the axle that extends into the box. The journal box as a whole, which includes the lid and the inner seal, is intended to be air tight so that dust, dirt, Water or other liquids cannot enter it. However, it is a feature of this invention that the box is provided with a breather opening so that when the air in the box becomes heated and starts to increase in pressure, it can escape freely without affecting the seals.

This opening 5, shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, may be located in the upper part of the body of the box or in the lid. An opening /1 of an inch in diameter is adequate. To prevent the opening from allowing foreign matter to pass through it into the box and thus defeating the purpose of a sealed box, a tubular plug 6 is fitted snugly in the opening. This plug has a flange 7 in its outer end that overlaps and engages the outer surface of the box. The plug projects into the box, where it is surrounded by an integral shoulder 8 that overlaps and engages the inner surface of the box. The plug is thus held securely in place. To facilitate insertion of the plug in the breather opening, its shoulder 8 is tapered toward the inner end of the plug. Also, the plug is resilient enough to permit the shoulder to be pushed through the opening 5. Thus, the plug may be made of synthetic rubber or a suitable plastic. To make sure that the shoulder can contract enough to pass through the opening, the inner end portion of the plug may be provided with four uniformly spaced radial slots 9 that extend entirely through the shoulder so that the portion of the plug that projects inwardly from the wall of the box is formed from four circumferentially spaced segments that can be flexed radially inward.

To prevent foreign matter from entering the journal box through the tubular plug, the outer end of the passage through the plug is closed by a thin wall 11 or diaphragm that is integral with the rest of the plug. This diaphragm, of course, is not solid but is divided into at least three pie-shaped segments or cusps by radial slits 12 intersecting at the center of the wall as shown in FIG. 3. Preferably, there are four slits, with the opposed sides of the slits engaging each other so that the wall normally seals the passage through the plug. However, when air pressure starts to increase inside the box, it will force or flex the segments of the wall outwardly and thereby escape between them, whereupon the segments will return to their normal sealing position. The diaphragm-like wall will therefore serve as a cusp valve. Of course, when the air in the box cools and contracts, sufficient air can be drawn in through the valve to equalize the pressure.

As a further precaution against entrance of foreign matter into the box, filtering material may be placed inside the plug. This material can be any suitable material that will not be aflected by the oil in the box. For example, polyurethane foam is suitable and can be made in the form of a solid cylinder 14 that is inserted in the plug. The outer end of the filtering material is spaced far enough from the slit wall 11 of the plug to permit the segments thereof to flex inwardly when necessary, as shown in FIG. 4.

A journal box made in accordance with this invention has all the advantages of a completely sealed box and yet air pressure within it cannot build up to the point where it will damage the inner seal.

According to the provisions of the patent statutes, I have explained the principle of my invention and have illustrated and described what I now consider to represent its best embodiment.

I claim:

1. A sealed railroad car journal box provided with a breather opening and a tubular resilient plug filling said opening having an integral diaphragm-like wall normally closing the outer end of the plug, said wall being provided with at least three uniformly spaced radial slits intersecting at the center of the wall to form a cusp valve.

2. A journal box according to claim 1, in which filtering material fills said tubular plug but is spaced from said cusp valve to permit it to open inwardly.

3. A journal box according to claim 1, in which said plug projects from both ends of said breather opening and has an integral flange at its outer end overlapping the outer surface of the box and has an integral shoulder at its inner end overlapping the inner surface of the box, said shoulder tapering toward the inner end of the plug to facilitate insertion of the plug in said opening.

4. A journal box according to claim 3, in which said plug is provided with at least four uniformly spaced radial slots therethrough extending entirely through said shoulder to permit the inner end portion of the plug to contract 10 when pushed into said opening.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1/1910 Jones 30881 X 8/1913 Austin 308-80 X 9/1913 Brown 308-80 X 7/ 1956 Hurlburt et a1 308-80 X US. Cl. X.R. 

